Witness Expenses

[Michaelhj]

I was sitated to court in Scotland in April 2011 and my expenses came to £450 with hotel, loss of salary, transport etc.
I submitted my claim and was asked for my receipts. I contacted the court and initially was told that the amount of the claim was not reasonable but I asked how I was supposed to get there without incurring those expenses.
The last I heard fom the plaintiff was my expenses were paid into court nearly a year ago and he has scanned me a copy of the receipt.
Every time I phone I am told the payment is being processed and I have asked to speak to a manager on several occasions but he is never there,
Where do I go from here as I do not think it would be possible to take the court to court.

[murraymints]

you need barmaid for this one !!

[boxtops]

Seek your own legal advice, a half hour consultation should be free.

[HowardKennitby]

Get the manager's name and write to him/her recorded delivery.

[tonywiltshire]

This is disgraceful the attendance of a witness is critical to the administration of justice in both the civil and criminal courts and everything should be done to encourage their attendance, which a delay in paying expenses will not achieve, though I must say in England it is very unusual. Contact your MP and make a complaint. You may be interested to know that the term for a person seeking a legal remedy in England and Wales is now known as a claimant rather than a plaintiff, in Scotland I understand it is pursuer.

[Brimoan]

I had to contact my MP to get my expenses going back 20 years.
It took a total of 12 months from an English Court.
I was told there had been a gross maladministration.

[tonywiltshire]

I should know better than to say witness expenses in England are usually paid promptly, as someone like Brimoan will rightly point out they have had difficulties. What I should have said was in my experience, which is confined to a fairly small part of England, witness expenses are usually paid promptly.
If there is anyone else who is facing delays in being reimbursed for the cost of being a witness, contact your MP who will usually get things moving.

[factor-fiction]

There is clearly a major problem here if people are having to wait 20 years for their expenses to be repaid.

[tonywiltshire]

That is not the way I am reading this F30, I am reading some 20 years ago it took Brimoan 12 months to be reimbursed for witness expenses, which was only achieved with the assistance of a MP.

[factor-fiction]

Could be- I read "expenses going back 20 years"differently

[Baldric]

In the late 90s I was called as a witness, Crown Court, I was only there for 2 days, took almost a year to get expenses paid.